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RR 2011/190 The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology Edited by Clifford J. Rogers Oxford University Press Oxford and New York 2010 ISBN 978 0 19 533842 3 URL: www.oxford-medievalwarfare.com/LOGIN?sessionid = 63f3bd7f530d6f1c65a794dd5f3a4d7d&authstatuscode = 414 Last visited July 2010 Contact publisher for online pricing Oxford Digital Reference Shelf Also available as a 3 vol. printed set (ISBN 978 0 19 533403 6; £220; $395)
Keywords Encyclopaedias, History, Warfare, Armed forces
Review DOI 10.1108/09504121111134205
Many scholarly publishers are competing in the electronic marketplace by actively converting print reference resources into electronic subscription databases or encyclopedias. This e-version of a three-volume print resource is one example of this. Most of the content from the print resource is available here, except for the numerous maps that are mentioned at the end of the Preface. In fact, the Preface is taken verbatim from the print resource, and it would have been nice if it could have been rewritten to be of more use for the e-resource.
In terms of content, there are more than one thousand entries written by over 200 scholars from twenty-two different countries. The topic itself, war and military technology in the Middle Ages, is of vast importance not only to the time period but to all aspects of medieval life and culture. One could say that the entire medieval society and economy was built on war. Most medieval people, from serfs through aristocracy, based their livelihood or careers on the varying winds and fortunes of war. Serfs and townsmen were often called up as soldiers or at least members of urban militia, to fight for their king or feudal lord, or to stand watch on town walls and gates....